1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a method of obtaining a nutritional response reflected in any one or more of more rapid growth, increased milk and fiber production and improved feed conversion efficiency, of livestock and poultry selected from cloven hoof ruminant animals such as cattle and sheep, swine, and poultry such as chickens, by introducing a nutritionally effective growth promoting substance into the daily diet, or ration, of the animals.
The invention more particularly relates to the use of ronnel, bromophos, or iodofenphos or a mixture thereof below the parasiticidal level as a nutritionally effective growth promotant, typically added to the daily diet in feed compositions and feed additive supplement compositions, including growing mash for poultry.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The use of ronnel, i.e., O,O-dimethyl O-(2,4,5-trichlorophenyl)phosphorothioate for the purpose of controlling parasites such as fleas, flies, lice, ticks, screw-worms and cattle grubs as well as the helminthic parasites such as lung worms, stomach worms and gastrointestinal worms, attacking warm-blooded domestic animals is taught and claimed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,811,480 issued Oct. 29, 1957. The method of the patent comprehends the administration of the ronnel either topically or orally at a dosage rate in the range of about 50 to 175 milligrams per kilogram of body weight depending upon the phosphate ester selected and the parasite intended to be controlled. It is further taught that the treatment may be carried out in the form of multiple doses over a period of several days in which case a daily dosage of from about 5 to about 25 milligrams per kilogram of body weight may be employed. Furthermore, it is taught in the patent that domestic animals thus protected from the adverse effects of parasites exhibit improved growth characteristics, but it is not taught that there is any nutritional effect. Ronnel has been sold and used for such parasiticidal purposes for some time.
Rather recently, feeding studies were carried out by the United States Department of Agriculture to determine tissue residues of steers fed ronnel and activated carbon. The results of feeding steers 4.5 milligrams ronnel per kilogram body weight daily for about 90 days is reported and described in Journal of Animal Science, Volume 40, No. 4, 1975 by T. S. Rumsey, E. E. Williams and A. D. Evans. Rumsey et al. report, among other things, both a parasiticide effect with respect to control of house and stable flies and also more rapid growth of the steers fed ronnel in the study.
Both the Moorman Mfg. Company and The Dow Chemical Company have prepared and sold a ronnel-containing mineral supplement (food additive) for cattle and sheep both in loose form and in block form. Such mineral supplements have contained from about 5.5 to about 6 percent by weight ronnel and are expected to provide the animals feeding therefrom at least 4 to 4.5 milligrams per kilogram of body weight per day.
The use of bromophos as an insecticide is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,227,610 and Belgian Pat. No. 625,198 described in CA 64, 8086a and CA 60, 13187a respectively. Bromophos is O,O-dimethyl O-4-bromo-2,5-dichlorophenyl phosphorothioate.
The use of iodofenphos as an insecticide is disclosed in Netherlands Application No. 65.15,066 of May 23, 1966 as described in CA 65, 13762b,a. Iodofenphos is O,O-dimethyl O-2,5-dichloro-4-iodophenyl phosphorothioate.